Best time to visit

[ramesh]

Hello Folks,

We are planning to visit Vermont to see the spectacular fall colors. We are from west coast area and would like to know when would be the best time to visit your state to see? I see some reports that says as 1st week of October and some of them says 2nd week is the best time to visit. So any suggestion would be highly appreciated.

Cheers,
Ramesh

[faxmachineanthem]

Hi ramesh,
Both the first and second week are likely to be good but in different parts of the state. The color typically starts in the high elevations and the northeast in very late September and moves to the low elevations and south through the second week of October. If you go late September through say October 4 or so, the Northeast Kingdom (St Johnsbury and north) is probably your best bet. Very early October is also nice along Rt 100 in the Killington area as that runs north and south at high elevations. The time around October 5 or so is a good bet for the Stowe area. The southern areas that are not at high elevations, such as Manchester and Woodstock, are typically said to be better for the second week of October.

Personally, I like planning for the first week of October and staying near St Johnsbury. It seems unlikely that you won't be able to find good foliage somewhere the first week of October. I expect to explore north of St. J at the beginning of the week, and south at the end of the first week. That said, if you're looking for the "town" experiences of Stowe, Manchester, and Woodstock, the northeast kingdom is not the place for that. But I love the rural and wilderness feel of the NEK.

I don't have as much experience as many on this board, but I think the second week leaves more up to chance. Last year, for instance, the color was fantastic in the northeast kingdom in very early October. From reading reports, it never got very nice in the second week in the southern part of the state after some bad windy rain storms came through.

[Utah Baker]

Hi Ramesh! As a frequent visitor to Vermont myself, I have been early, late and occasionaly spot on. And very visit has been memorable and beautiful. Whatever dates you choose, keep checking back here, these guys will keep you up to date on where the color is. And remember it does not take long to get from one point to another in Vermont. And there is so much more to the "Vermont Experience" than just the color! Prepare to get "hooked", there is no place I'd rather be when autumn comes knocking!

[wentworth]

Hi ramesh,
Both the first and second week are likely to be good but in different parts of the state. The color typically starts in the high elevations and the northeast in very late September and moves to the low elevations and south through the second week of October. If you go late September through say October 4 or so, the Northeast Kingdom (St Johnsbury and north) is probably your best bet. Very early October is also nice along Rt 100 in the Killington area as that runs north and south at high elevations. The time around October 5 or so is a good bet for the Stowe area. The southern areas that are not at high elevations, such as Manchester and Woodstock, are typically said to be better for the second week of October.

Personally, I like planning for the first week of October and staying near St Johnsbury. It seems unlikely that you won't be able to find good foliage somewhere the first week of October. I expect to explore north of St. J at the beginning of the week, and south at the end of the first week. That said, if you're looking for the "town" experiences of Stowe, Manchester, and Woodstock, the northeast kingdom is not the place for that. But I love the rural and wilderness feel of the NEK.

I don't have as much experience as many on this board, but I think the second week leaves more up to chance. Last year, for instance, the color was fantastic in the northeast kingdom in very early October. From reading reports, it never got very nice in the second week in the southern part of the state after some bad windy rain storms came through.

well said--and agree that color was really beautiful in Northeast Kingdom last year in late Sept to very early Oct--Rt. 114 had great color as well as Danville, Joe's Pond, etc.

[wentworth]

Hi Ramesh! As a frequent visitor to Vermont myself, I have been early, late and occasionaly spot on. And very visit has been memorable and beautiful. Whatever dates you choose, keep checking back here, these guys will keep you up to date on where the color is. And remember it does not take long to get from one point to another in Vermont. And there is so much more to the "Vermont Experience" than just the color! Prepare to get "hooked", there is no place I'd rather be when autumn comes knocking!

yes indeed there's more than just color--We also love the vermont apples, apple cider, cider donuts, the herb + garlic cheese, fresh apple pie,maple syrup, and various small stores along Rt. 100 and Rt 4

[Utah Baker]

Wentworth, you must have looked in the back seat of our car, you just listed all the goodies we munch on while driving, expect of course for the maple creemee's, those would melt, and are devoured immediately!

[autzig]

Ramesh, if you haven't made rental car or room reservations yet, you must do it soon. Rental cars are often unavailable in Burlington during leaf peeping season and the hotels fill up with the tour bus crowds.

Al

[WayneF]

Naive first-timer.... If one just shows up during first week of October, is it impossible to find a room each night? Will driving a hour to a larger town do it? (with aid of an internet terminal to find it?) Or is it simply a harder problem than that?

[autzig]

WayneF, finding a room can be almost impossible. There aren't many large towns in Vermont and rooms are hard to come by. If you can make a reservation via the internet, or the hotel is part of a national chain, they get booked up. You may be able to find a room at a ma pa type motel but I'd much prefer to have a reservation. During leaf season you will see tour buses at hotels everywhere and every last room is full.

Due to my screw up a few years ago, I reserved a car the day after my intended arrival. When I got an e-mail from the rental car reminding me to pick my car on Sunday, I tried to change the reservation but couldn't find an available rental car in Burlington. My hotel room was booked in Barre. After much angst, a friend of mine was able to arrange for a car for me for a day until I could pick up my rental as originally scheduled. I thought I might have to cancel my room in Barre and find one in Burlington. I tried to find a room, just in case, but couldn't find anything.

I've booked all of my rooms this year and we're flying to Boston where a rental car won't be an issue.

Al

[ctyanky]

Wayne: I did some looking around regarding last minute reservations during the height of foliage season. Here is what I found:

"If you do not make advance reservations, the Vermont Lodging and Hospitality Council recommends securing a room by 4 p.m. each day. During the foliage season Vermont resort areas have ample lodging facilities, including inns, hotels and condominiums. Lodging will often be available at these areas when beds are filled in some of the larger towns."

"Contact lodging bureaus at major resort areas and local chambers of commerce for the latest information on availability."

I've also read somewhere, can't find it at the moment, that some chambers will give you the names of folks in the towns who will open up their homes for a tourist who has not secured lodging in time. Sort of a last minute b&b situation.

Here is the link for the local chambers of commerce:

http://www.vtchamber.com/about/local/

Hope this will allay some of your apprehension.

[wentworth]

Wentworth, you must have looked in the back seat of our car, you just listed all the goodies we munch on while driving, expect of course for the maple creemee's, those would melt, and are devoured immediately!

lol--We're going to try the Maple Creamee's this year for sure

[WayneF]

Thanks all, that is some good ideas, and I'm sure very good advice. Better planning would certainly seem wise, but we are too inexperienced to be able to work out any firm schedule. Hopefully starting early enough may find something up ahead, with a longer drive as the backup. It ought to be interesting.

[Andy]

Wayne: You should always be able to find a room in Burlington. The good news is that you can drive from almost anywhere in Vermont to Burlington in the same day. You might want to book something there as a backup -- then you will have to plan. You don't want to be in Brattlboro at 9:00 at night and have to drive to Burlington (at least 2 hours). You are taking a lot of risk planning to just try to find some place. Vermont is a state with many very small towns -- maybe a gas station and small store. Not many hotels in most -- except for major towns like Burlington, Montpelier, Rutland, St. Albans, St. Johnsbury, etc. Don't even think about Stowe.

[From_the_NEK]

Some of the ski resort areas may have condos to rent as well. Typically more expensive than a hotel but cozier.

[pwt54]

ramesh, reserving a room is the best idea. You might find a room during foliage season, but it will be expensive. If you are planning a long stay you may find that renting a condo in a ski area like Stowe, Sugarbush, or killington and using that for a base will be good deal.